Arcade game operators prefer to install arcade games, such as video games, pinball games, redemption games, claw cranes, etc., in locations where people may be localized for long periods of time, such as hotels, restaurants, shopping centers, and other public places. In particular, cruise ships are suitable locations for arcade games. Often passengers on cruise ships are domicile on the cruise ship for days at a time giving the passengers frequent opportunities to utilize arcade games.
However, maintaining a network of arcade games on cruise ships presents various difficulties to the operator of the arcade games. The operator must process payments for games, repair broken games, and change game pricing while the cruise ship is in port, and often cruise ships are only in port for a matter of hours. The operator may not be able to accommodate such a tight time schedule, and the operator has no opportunity to view game play statistics, transaction information, and game errors while the ship is at sea. Moreover, passengers on cruise ships often use a room or account key card to make shipboard purchases. As such, passenger may lack the cash needed to play arcade games or it is not immediately convenient to activate a game.